Richard Vijgen

Hyperthread

Hyperthread is a series of woven tapestries in which Richard Vijgen explores the intertwined histories of the jacquard loom and the microchip. The former played an important role in the industrial revolution, the latter in the digital revolution. The old jacquard punch cards used a binary code (hole-no hole) to control the weaving programme, a system still used in modern microchips to communicate information. The network of threads on a loom also closely resembles the circuits that process digital information.

Vijgen zoomed in on nine different microchips. He enlarged them 4,000 times and translated them into woven fabrics. The results were first shown at Dutch Design Week 2024. The simplest chip became the smallest fabric measuring 18 x 16 cm. The most complex chip, which contains the most information, became a fabric measuring 159 x 144 cm. The coloured yarns precisely trace the digital circuits that are invisible to the eye. The use of synthetic yarns with minimal shrinkage and a linen backing ensure the fabrics stay taut and straight, mimicking their microscopic silicon alter egos.

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